Coming Home
by the electric phantom
Summary: A ten year anniversary special! It's the day of Hector and Lisa's baby shower, and everyone is back together again!


**A.N.: Well, it's the tenth anniversary of our beloved show premiering on PBS, so you know what that means: fanfic time! Even though this probably isn't my best work, I'm proud of it. So I hope you enjoy,**

"Be careful, Lisa," she warned herself, "Don't wanna fall this close to the finish line.

Lisa giggled and stared down at her very pregnant belly. It was so strange. The first five months, people couldn't believe that she was expecting. And then one morning she woke up looking like she stuffed at least three watermelons down her shirt. And she was only getting bigger.

"I'll be fine," she said. All she was doing was hanging some streamers. She'd be fine.

"We've gotta work fast," Hector announced as he entered the living room carrying an array of snacks in from the kitchen, "It's crunch time."

It truly was. Lisa's outfit for the shower hadn't fit that morning, which has caused an avalanche of problems. Now they had less than an hour to finish getting everything ready for the baby shower. Lisa bit her lip nervously. There were so many hormones coursing through her veins, each making her more emotional than the next. And right now she couldn't help but worry that the party would be a bust and it was all her fault.

Her husband (how crazy was _that?_ Hector Ruiz was her husband!) noticed her worries and approached her. A gentle hand began tracing circles on her cheek.

"Hey, it's all gonna be good," he assured her with a smile.

"I know, I just-"

 _Knock. Knock. Knock._

The couple turned to stare at each other.

"Who'd get here this early?" Lisa wondered aloud. Hector shrugged.

"Only one way to find out."

And with that, he went to open the door for their first party guest.

"Hector!"

"Hey, Danny!"

The two men hugged for the first time in years. Lisa awkwardly waddled over to where the old Prankster stood. He was wearing a pastel blue and pink suit and a matching fedora (of course). In his hand was a present wrapped in a similar color scheme.

"The woman of the hour!" Danny shouted, crossing to Lisa to give her a hug, "How are we doing?"

"The baby and I are doing good. What about you?"

"Couldn't be better. You know I love traveling, but it sure is great to be back in New York. And I have a whole two months where I don't have to speak in iambic pentameter!"

There was the cursory amount of laughter followed by an awkward silence.

"Well, you can put the gift right here," Hector said, gesturing to an empty table in the corner, "We're running a bit behind schedule, so we still have some decorating to do before everyone gets here."

Danny's eyes widened in shock.

"Hector, do you mean to tell me that your lovely, pregnant wife is decorating for her own baby shower?"

"It's fine, Danny. I can do it," Lisa insisted gently.

"Well, of course you _can_ , but you shouldn't have to. You should be eating pickles and peanut butter with your feet up!"

"Mm, pickles," Lisa muttered to herself. Sensing that Danny wasn't going to let this go, she sat down in her favorite rocking chair and closed her eyes.

Maybe Danny had a point. After all, Lisa quickly fell asleep as Hector and Danny worked on the decorations while her mother took care of the food.

"How's Keith doing?" Danny asked as tied a balloon. Hector sighed and passed his friend some ribbon.

"He's doing a lot better than he was a couple months ago. I think the baby has been helping him not think about it."

"I was so surprised when I found out. I mean," Danny stopped to blow another balloon, "Leo wasn't old. I just… well, I'm glad he's doing okay. Are he and Jessica-"

"Not yet. At this point, I don't know if they'll ever get engaged."

Little did either of them know that Jessica and Keith were standing outside the door discussing the exact same thing.

"We can't tell them yet. I don't wanna compete for attention with the baby," Jessica whispered.

"I get it, Jess. I just can't help but feel like you're embarrassed by me or something."

Jessica's gaze softened. She pulled at the chain tucked under her dress to reveal a diamond ring in the place of a pendant.

"Would I have this if I was embarrassed by you?"

Keith smiled at her and placed a quick kiss on her lips.

"You're right. But I still think that we should tell Danny ahead of time."

"Oh, yeah, totally."

Jessica tucked the ring back under her dress, kissed her fiancé on the cheek, and knocked on the door.

A moment later, Hector opened it.

"Wow, everybody's coming early today, aren't they?" he said with a smile as he hugged Keith.

"Who beat us here?" Jessica asked as she hugged her brother.

"That would be me!" Danny called from inside the apartment.

Jessica and Keith entered into the living room, each giving Danny Rebus a hug.

"It's good to see you, man," Keith said with a genuine smile.

"You too," Danny agreed, clasping a hand on the younger man's shoulder, "Oh my god, this shirt is so soft. Where did you get it?"

"Thrifting," Keith said with a laugh as he popped the dress shirt's orange collar, "Gotta save money for those student loans."

"That's right, you guys graduated in May."

"Nope," Jessica said. Danny quirked an eyebrow to give his signature look to her.

"I graduated," Keith began to explain.

"I still have a semester left," Jessica added, "Gap year."

"That's fun. What did you do with it?" Danny asked.

"I traveled. Across the railroads of Europe," Jessica said with a chuckle, "Spending as much time as I wanted wherever I wanted, meeting new people, trying new things."

"That sounds amazing," Danny said, impressed.

At that point, Lisa woke up.

"Did I miss the party?" she mumbled. Hector chuckled and kissed her forehead.

"No, Jess and Keith just decided to be early too."

"Early is on time, on time is late, late is unacceptable," Danny and Keith said in unison. They stared at each other for a moment, surprised that the other remembered their old mantra.

"Glad to see I trained my actors well," Jessica commented to no one in particular. Lisa nodded.

"Does anybody want some coffee?"

"I'll take some," Jessica said.

The two women made their way to the kitchen.

The three men stared at each other for a moment, none of them saying anything.

"I'm gonna quick change before anybody else gets here," Hector said.

"Yeah, we can't have Francine seeing you in jeans and a t-shirt," Danny joked good-naturedly. Hector smiled.

"I'll be back in a hot sec."

Once Hector was gone, Keith put the two gifts he had been carrying down next to Danny's.

"Hey, I'm sorry about…" Danny trailed off.

"Thanks. Actually, there's something I wanna tell you, but you can't tell anyone."

"Is everything okay?"

"Oh yeah," Keith said with a nod, "Jess just doesn't want people to know before the baby is born that we're-"

"Is she pregnant?" Danny whispered to him. Keith stared at him for a moment in shock.

"Oh my god, no. Not now. Definitely not. Way too soon. No, we're, uh, we're engaged."

Danny's jaw dropped.

"Keith, that's amazing!"

"You're the first person we've told, so you gotta keep it a secret."

"Of course! I promise I won't fall back into that old Prankster habit of revealing secret plans when I'm not supposed to."

Keith bit the inside of his cheek, trying his very best not to laugh.

"I appreciate it."

"What do you appreciate, Keith?" Lisa asked. She and Jessica had just entered the room.

"Oh, just…." Danny paused as he came up with his lie, "How I didn't quote Shakespeare when I had the chance to." Keith made eye contact with Jessica, and she immediately understood.

"So, what have you been up to, Danny?" she asked, sitting on the loveseat as she did so. Keith plopped down next to her.

"Oh, not much," Danny said as he sat on one of the armchairs, "Touring around, doing shows, visiting schools to teach them about Shakespeare's staging conditions."

"Fun," Lisa commented, taking a sip of her coffee. The grandfather clock in the corner began to strike the hour.

"Well, I guess the party's officially started," Hector said, finally entering in his purple button down, black pants, and a yellow tie.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Lisa moved to get it, but Hector stopped her.

"Sit down, sweetie. You need to take it easy."

Lisa obliged him, and Hector went to the door. No one could see past him, but as the door opened, they all heard a familiar laugh.

"Hey, Manny!"

"How are ya, Hector?" Manny said, "I'd hug you, but-"

"Yeah, no dude, this is huge. You didn't have to-"

"Oh no, we wanted to. Little Mean Robot and I worked on these specifically for your little baby."

"Aw, thanks, man."

Manny entered the room, and Danny was surprised. He hadn't seen his friend in years, and the genius was far more muscular than he'd ever been when they were younger.

"Danny!" Manny shouted, "How's the Shakespeare?"

"Great. How's the science?"

"Can't get too into detail," Manny said as he put his present down with the others, "But some of these Skeleckians I'm working with… they could take over the world easy if they weren't so damn nice." He turned to Lisa.

"How are you doing today? Are we kicking?"

"Not too bad today," she said with a smile, "But that'll probably change soon."

"You want anything to drink, Manny?" Hector asked.

"Not right now," he said, sitting down on the couch, "I'm just wanna hang out. It's been to long since the ten of us have hung out."

"Eight," Lisa corrected.

"Gilds couldn't make it?" Manny asked.

"Yeah, she's still living in France so that's not a shock," Hector said.

"Besides," Lisa said, leaning into the group, "I'm kind of glad. I wouldn't want two million people watching my baby shower on YouTube."

Everyone laughed. Gilda's channel was very popular, so it wouldn't have been a surprise.

"She did send a nice present," Hector commented, "A baby monitor." He would have said more, but another guest knocked on the door.

Hector went to the door.

"Hey, Francine. You look nice."

"Oh, thank you," she said as she entered the apartment in a mauve pantsuit, "I've got a meeting at six, so I'll be heading there right after this."

"You're not staying the whole time?" Hector asked, looking a little disappointed.

"Yeah, unfortunately, nepotism can only get you so far," Francine joked. Everyone laughed except Danny, who tilted his head in confusion.

"I don't-"

"I work for my mother," Francine explained, "I design the interior decor for the hotels."

"Does anybody want a drink?" Hector offered, "Water, coffee, tea, wine?"

"Wine? But Lisa can't drink," Danny pointed out.

"It's alright, Danny," Lisa said gently.

"It's rude," Danny insisted.

"I'll have some water," Francine said, preventing Danny from furthering his point.

"Do you still have that jasmine tea?" Keith asked, looking up at Hector hopefully. Hector chuckled and ruffled his hair.

"You mean the stuff you got me for Christmas? Yeah, I've got some. You need a refill on that coffee, sis?"

"No, I'm alright," Jessica said, "The last thing I need is to stay up all night."

"I thought that's all college students do," Francine teased. Everyone laughed as Jessica shrugged.

"I need my sleep."

"Oof, I feel that," Lisa said, patting her stomach sympathetically, "This one likes to keep me up at night." Hector swooped down and placed a kiss on his wife's forehead before heading off to the kitchen.

"So," Francine said, turning to Jessica and Keith, "When are we going to see you two get married?"

Jessica and Keith immediately stiffened. Keith instinctively pulled his hand away.

"No, Francine. They aren't getting married. God, why can't leave them alone?" Danny all but shouted.

Lisa took a sip of her coffee. Manny stared at Jessica and Keith in confusion. At that exact moment, there was a knock at the door that saved the couple from the awkward moment. Lisa moved to get up but winced in pain.

"Danny, do you mind?" she asked. Danny leaped up and opened the door.

"Hi," he whispered, staring at the person standing outside the apartment.

"Hey," said the person at the door. They stared at each other in silence.

"Are you gonna let her in?" Manny called, teasing his friend. Flustered, Danny stepped aside and Annie came in. Her look was far more understated than it had been when they were younger, as she was only wearing three colors and one patterned item.

"Hey, everyone," she greeted, waving at the group.

"Is that Annie?" Hector called from the kitchen.

"It sure is," she called back, "Whatcha doing in there?"

"Making tea. You want some?"

"Yes please!" Danny sat back down in the armchair before noticing that there was only one other chair. Danny stood up, gesturing for her to sit down.

"No, no, I'm okay." She sat down on the armrest instead. Danny sat back down. Annie turned to him, brimming with curiosity about how the years had changed him, when Hector returned with the drinks.

"How are you, Annie?" Hector said warmly, "Grad school still going well?"

"Totally," she said with a smile as she accepted a cup of tea, "I get to spend all my time talking to people who know what the hell I'm saying when I talk about different types of lace and the pros and cons of-"

Manny, teasingly, pretended to doze off, complete with snoring.

"Manny!" Danny, Jessica, Francine, and Lisa cried (with Francine throwing a pillow for good measure) as Manny laughed. Hector chuckled as Keith just shook his head.

"It's good to see you guys again," Keith said with a smile, "It's been too long since we all got together."

"But we're not all here," Francine said, "I know Gilda and Marty don't live in town, but what about Shock?"

"He had to work," Hector explained, glancing over at Keith. The younger man had his head resting against Jessica's hair as they held hands. Her thumb made small circles across his palm as the room filled with an awkward sense of melancholy.

"Well," Lisa said, "What should we do first? Games? Presents?"

"It's your shower, Lisa," Annie pointed out.

"It's _our_ shower," Lisa corrected, "We're in this together."

"Yeah, but Hector didn't have to buy a completely new wardrobe," Jessica pointed out. Lisa blushed.

"That's true. Okay… how about gifts? While we're all here?"

"Sounds perfect," Hector said with a positively radiant smile.

"Here you go," Annie said, passing her gift to Lisa.

It turned out that Annie had gotten a gift for the parents: a parody of bedtime stories entitled _Go the Fuck to Sleep._ Manny had taken the opposite approach. He and Little Mean Robot had knitted twenty-four baby hats in every color except pastel pink and blue.

"We didn't wanna stereotype," he explained.

Jessica's present turned out to be a quilt that she and her roommate had worked together to make. Each square was made out of pieces of Hector and Lisa's hand me downs that she had stitched together into the giant heart in the center of the blanket.

Francine was far less sentimental. Her gift was a rather expensive set of soaps, lotions, bath salts, bath bombs, and other relaxation products for the soon-to-be parents.

Danny's gift was truly a thoughtful one. Inspired by the production that had bridged the gap between himself and the Company, particularly his love interest Lisa, he had found a storybook version of _A Midsummer Night's Dream._ At that, Lisa began to cry.

Any attempt by the expecting mother to control her emotions was completely thrown out the window by seeing Keith's present.

"Oh, Keith," Lisa had whispered, "it's beautiful."

That it was. Keith had made a painting of a wordball. But it wasn't just a regular wordball. It was a rainbow of orange and yellow and green and blue and purple and pink and red and silver and gold and white and black all swirled together on an orange-ish brown canvas.

"The colors represent all of the family. Lisa, you're the green because biology. Hector, you're blue. Jess is purple for obvious reasons. Marcus asked if he could be yellow. I'm orange. Shock is the red.

Hector, your mom is the black and your dad is the silver. Lisa, your parents never back to me on a color, so they're the gold and the white. And the background is Dad, cuz he's what brought everybody together to begin with."

"Oh, Keith," Lisa said again, fully sobbing. Hector patted his wife's shoulder, also crying.

"These are all such amazing gifts, you guys!" Lisa said, wiping her eyes.

"Yeah, man, you guys are all great," Hector agreed.

"So what now?" Manny asked, "I've never been to a baby shower before. What's the usual protocol?"

"Well, we've got some game ideas," Hector said.

"But, Francine, if you have to leave super soon, we can all just hang out for a bit," Lisa offered.

"No, Lisa, I don't- besides," Francine stammered, checking her phone, "I don't have to go quite yet. I'm sure we'll be able to play at least one game."

"Okay, then!" Lisa said happily, clapping her hands together, "What should we play?"

"What games are there?" Keith asked hesitantly.

"Well, we've got a whole bunch of baby food that we've lipped the labels off of so we can guess what the ingredients are," Hector explained.

"Plot twist: they all have arsenic. Someone's finally murdering us," Danny joked.

"About time," Jessica joked back.

Francine and Hector laughed at this. Manny shook his head.

"You guys are so weird."

"We also have pin the poop on the diaper," Hector offered.

"Is it… what's it made of?" Francine asked.

"Paper," Lisa said, "We got this at Party City."

"Oh thank god," Manny said, relieved.

"Is there going to be a gender reveal?" Annie asked.

"We don't really care," Hector said honestly, "We love them no matter what."

"Yeah, and we're going to be trying to raise them without the gender roles and the expectations that come with them. It'd be hypocritical if we started off with making a big deal out of the gender before the baby's born," Lisa said.

"Good for you guys," Jessica said, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Let's play the poop game," Keith suggested.

After setting up and explaining the rules to everyone, it was Lisa's turn to go. Hector tied the blindfold for her.

"Can you see anything, Lisa?" Jessica asked.

"Nope."

"I'm gonna spin you around three times," Hector said gently, placing his hands on her shoulders.

"Everybody count!" Francine said.

"One, two, three!"

Lisa's nose crinkled.

"Did you guys hit me with a water balloon?"

And that was when they noticed the water trailing down Lisa's leg.

"Oh my god," Keith whispered.

"We gotta go!" Hector cried, untying the blindfold.

Francine glanced at her watch.

"I have to go. Keep me posted."

Annie glanced at her phone. It had been two hours since Lisa's water had broken. Jessica had been pacing around the waiting room the entire time, much to the annoyance of Manny.

"You know that pacing isn't gonna make the baby come out faster, right?"

"Shut up, Manny," she muttered.

"I'm just saying, you're not helping right now."

"Shut up, Manny."

"But-"

Manny and Jessica's bickering was interrupted by an old friend entering the waiting room.

"Hey, how are they?" Shock asked.

"We haven't heard anything," Keith explained. Shock nodded with a small sigh.

"Oh, and, Jess?" Jessica looked up, "Your parents called me. They're on their way, but traffic."

"Has anybody heard from the Heffenbacher's?" Danny asked.

"They were in Florida for a retreat. They got plane tickets, but the flight got delayed, so I have no idea when they'll be able to get here," Keith explained.

"I need some coffee," Annie announced, "Does anybody else want some?"

"That sounds… really nice," Jessica said.

"I could use the caffeine," Manny admitted.

"Yeah, me too," Keith added.

"Shock, you want anything?"

Shock nodded.

Annie turned to Danny.

"What about you?"

"My order is too complicated; I'll just come with you."

And with that, they were out of the waiting room and roaming the halls of the hospital. Annie crossed her arms across her body as she glanced up at Danny.

"So, how have you been?" she asked.

"Good."

"Good."

"You?"

"Good."

"Good."

A couple of nurses passed them in the hallway, looking over some test results. Danny stopped suddenly.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

"I just- I've missed you."

"You've been gone for years. I'd miss everybody, too."

"No. I mean, yeah, I've especially missed you. I know things didn't really work out between us, but we were young. And we've grown."

"What are you trying to say?" she asked, putting a hand on her hip.

"Annie, I- I wasn't ready to be in a real relationship back then. But no matter who I've talked to, no matter how many dates I've gone on… they couldn't compare to you."

Blush creeped onto Annie's as Danny intently gazed on her. She looked up at him, emotions coursing through her.

"So, should we like… do something about it?"

"Can we- I mean, you feel the same way?"

Annie beamed up at him.

"Yeah," she said, "Yeah, I do."

Danny grinned, his eyes crinkling up. Annie stood up on her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around him.

"Can I kiss you?" he asked softly. She tilted her head.

"I thought you weren't about kissing?" she teased.

"I wasn't," he said "But I can express no kinder sign of love than this kind kiss."

And just like that, he gently placed a kiss on her lips. The tenderness of the moment was melted by the heat of their passion like a candle by a flame. Annie could practically hear the swelling orchestra that would have been playing if this was a movie. But eventually, they had to let go.

"So what play were you quoting?" she teased.

" _King Henry VI Part Two_ Act One, Scene One," he said with a smile.

"God, you're such a fucking nerd," Annie said with a chuckle. Danny giggled at that.

"We should probably get the coffees now."

By the time they got back to the waiting room with the coffee, the scene had changed dramatically since they had left. Jessica and Keith had fallen asleep on each other, with Jessica resting on Keith's shoulder and Keith using her hair as a pillow. Manny was chatting with Mr. and Mrs. Ruiz in Spanish animatedly. And leaning up against a wall casually while laughing at a joke Shock was telling was…

"Francine?" Annie asked, shocked, "You came back?"

Francine turned to them, a small hint of blush on her cheeks.

"I said I would. Mother was very understanding; she let me go once my part of the meeting was done."

"Have we heard any news, about the baby or the Heffenbacher's?" Danny asked.

Shock shook his head.

"Even if we did, it'd be on Jess or Keith's phone, so…" Francine trailed off.

"So now we wait," Annie said, sliding down onto the floor as she did so.

They sat like this for many hours, watching as other people got news on their loved ones, occasionally getting up to pee, to pace, or just to fidget. At one point they had to get up to greet Lisa's parents when they arrived, only to immediately go back to what they were doing. But then, finally, a Skeleckian nurse in Van Gogh themed scrubs stepped out.

"Family of Lisa Ruiz?" he called out to the room.

The whole posse stood up. Jessica and her parents, Keith, Lisa's parents, Danny, Annie, Manny, Francine; all of them.

If the nurse was alarmed, he didn't show it.

"Everything went great. We're cleaning them all up, but you guys can come back."

"Will we have to split up?" Danny asked.

The nurse glanced around the room.

"Well, normally yeah, but," he paused, "I think we can make an exception for the former ambassador."

Jessica grinned.

"Thank you," she said earnestly.

The group moved down the hall, passing room after room of mothers and their babies. Huge smiles spread across each and every face.

"I can't believe I'm a grandma," Mrs. Heffenbacher said with tears in her eyes. Her husband squeezed her hand.

"Here they are," the Skeleckian nurse said with a smile as he opened the door.

"Oh my god!" Jessica cried as she ran into the hospital room, "Hello, little one!"

Jessica jumped onto the bed next to Lisa, who was holding the newborn. Hector was also sitting at the foot of the bed. Both of them had huge smiles on their faces.

"How are you feeling, Lisa?" Danny asked.

"I'm great," she said as the crowd shuffled in.

"The baby is beautiful," Mrs. Ruiz said breathlessly. Hector grinned at his mom.

"Isn't he?"

Everyone stared at the tiny baby with his jet black hair, brown eyes, dimples, and a tiny round face.

"He looks just like you, Hector," Mr. Heffenbacher said.

"You're full of shit, Dan," Mr. Ruiz said, "He looks like Lisa."

Keith looked around the rooms, tears brimming in his eyes. Hector smiled at his friend.

"He would've loved to be here," Hector said, glancing over at his wife. The new mother nodded.

"Which is why we're naming him after him. Leo Daniel Ruiz."

At that, all the tears began to pour. Keith, Jessica, Lisa, Hector, Daniel Heffenbacher (the source of the baby's middle name), Daniel Rebus (who believed himself to be the source of that same name), both of the new grandmothers; even Francine was crying tears of joy at the display.

"Hi, Leo," Keith whispered, wiping tears away to better see the baby, "Hey, little guy."

The baby turned to face the source of the noise.

"Yeah, hi," Keith said, a smile spreading across his face.

"That's Keith. He's gonna be your uncle soon," Danny said.

Everyone stared at him. His jaw dropped.

"Oh no, did I do the Prankster thing of revealing the plan too early with your engagement?"

Everyone continued to stare at him in stunned silence. Eventually, Jessica sighed.

"Well, I guess now's as good a time as any to tell you all." And with that, she pulled out the ring.

Francine gasped. Hector chuckled.

"Congratulations, you guys," Hector said.

Everyone began to congratulate the betrothed. And in that moment, they were all happy. And they continued to be happy.

A few years after Leo was born, Hector and Lisa had a set of twins named Natalie Ann and Jonathan Paul. Once the kids were all in school, Lisa went back to school to get her PhD. Meanwhile, Hector led the M. Flower High Hippies to a record-winning amount of state championships in basketball.

Jessica and Keith got married a year later in a chapel in Morocco. Traveling around the world, they never truly settled down. Instead, they became investigative journalists covering stories of injustice everywhere they went. Their work resulted in a surge in donations to causes they shed light on, especially those dealing with kids.

After breaking up and getting back together seven times, Annie finally proposed to Danny. They adopted one human child named Mandy and one fluffy child named Alfie who became an internet famous corgi.

Manny and his Little Mean Robot continued to craft and invent together for eighty-seven years. At that point, they invented a space ship that was actually a ship like in _Treasure Planet_ and set off into space to test their invention. No one on Earth or Skelecki ever saw them again, but some space travelers say that they can hear his cackle in space.

Gilda continued to be a successful influencer for all of her life. She spread a message of self-love and self-acceptance, encouraging people to be themselves and not try to copy someone else. Francine doesn't mind.

She actually has a lot to be happy with. She and Shock got married many years down the line. Together, they created the Antigone Lodges, a branch of hotels that were more quaint than Antigone's usual fare.

And as for Marcus, he turned out pretty well. His plans to become a social worker were forever changed when he inherited his grandmother's cookbook. After discovering the magic of cooking, he started FOCUS (don't ask what it stands for, he changes it every time), a program helping kids with learning disabilities develop life skills in the kitchen.

And they were happy.

 **A.N.: Wow, this ending got WAY cheesier than I intended! Ah well, what can you do? I wanted them to be happy. Ten years ago, I was an insecure mess of a kid with no friends. I was bullied all the time to the point that I wanted to die. But I was able to pull through because every day, I got to see my four friends. When Lisa said "you belong in the Company" during the theme song, it gave me the strength to keep going. And look at me now! Not only do I have friends in real life, but I also have friends that I've meant specifically from from this fandom. Needless to say, I wouldn't be the same if I wasn't in this fandom.**

The girl stopped typing and paused her video on YouTube. She smiled and switched over to Snapchat. The photo her friend had sent her was a large stack of pineapples. She took a selfie and captioned it 'gonna eat some chicken pot pie rn' before sending it. Next, she moved to Instagram, where she opened her DM's. It was a question about what her story was going to be about. She paused before typing 'wait and see ;)' back at her author friend. Then, she turned back to her fanfic. She hadn't been writing for the fandom as much lately, and that sometimes made her feel a little guilty. But she had grown up and changed. And she still loved them all dearly.

"Happy ten years, guys," she said with a fond smile as she saved the document. A text appeared on her phone simply saying 'Taco Bell?' She grinned at it for a moment before responding 'I'll be ready in five.' She went back to work, opening up the site she hadn't posted onto in almost a year. It was all muscle memory as she got ready to publish her work.

"Hey you guys," she whispered as she sent it out into the world, memories of doing this a million times before coming over her. She took a deep, breath, closed her eyes, and took a moment to remember all that the last ten years had brought her. She closed the laptop, grabbed her coat, and went to meet up with her friends.

And she was happy.

 **A.N.: Wow, this ending got WAY cheesier than I intended! Ah well, what can you do? I wanted them to be happy. Ten years ago, I was an insecure mess of a kid with no friends. I was bullied all the time to the point that I wanted to die. But I was able to pull through because every day, I got to see my four friends. When Lisa said "you belong in the Company" during the theme song, it gave me the strength to keep going. And look at me now! Not only do I have friends in real life, but I also have friends that I've meant specifically from from this fandom. Needless to say, I wouldn't be the same if I wasn't in this fandom.**


End file.
